War Handwavium

This is what a soldier said about his time in Afghanistan:

I went to Afghanistan believing in “fighting terrorism” and “liberating Afghans.” During my first mission, we were protecting refugees escaping an area that was under attack… I was deeply affected by their misery, and by the poverty and suffering of the Afghan people in general. In my mind, our presence was “helping Afghans,” particularly with educating women and children. My combat unit participated in “humanitarian aid” – accompanying doctors and delivering food, fuel, clothing, school and other supplies to Afghan villages.

Sound Familiar? Many American military personel who are or have served in Afghanistan have described similar feelings about their mission in Afghanistan.

Except this was from a soldier in the Russian Army talking about the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan during the 1980’s.

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/10/28/propaganda/index.html